There are over 420 places in the American national park system, but only 63 are entitled – with a capital N, with a capital P – “National Park”.
The most visited of these, Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee, received a record 14.2 million recreational visits in 2021. Zion, Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon are other top attractions. See a full list of the National Park Service’s most popular sites here.
But what about the least visited headliners? Parks that can be particularly wild or difficult to access, but also uncrowded and largely undiscovered. Let’s take a look at these.
Seven of the 15 least visited national parks in 2021 are in Alaska.
No wonder that many of the least visited national parks are in the 49th state. Traveling nearly 665,000 square miles – mostly wild and often frozen – navigating the state can be difficult and there is plenty of wildlife.
Least visited of the 63 national parks, Gates of the Arctic National Park & amp; Preserve, does not contain roads or trails, and visitors must fly or hike to the park, according to the National Park Service.
It’s fair to say that the people who were responsible for the 7,362 recreational visits in 2021 were very involved in the wildlife experience. Denali National Park in Alaska, which ranks 13th among the least visited parks, recorded 229,521 visits in comparison.
15 least-visited US National Parks in 2021
1. Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve, Alaska – 7,362 recreation visits
With no roads, no trails, no cellular services, and no fixed campsites, this huge area is a true wildlife experience. The park and reserve has six designated Wild Rivers. “Visitors are free to wander around 8.4 million acres of great natural beauty,” says the park’s website. Visitors must be self-sufficient, flexible and “capable of extracting themselves and communicating in the event of an emergency.” Arrival prepared.
2. National Park of American Samoa – 8,495 recreation visits
Most parkers will need a passport to visit this remote area in the South Pacific. Hawaiian Airlines offers direct flights from Honolulu. As the only National Park Service facility south of the equator, the park has units on three different islands in American Samoa. The park covers 13,500 acres, approximately 4,000 of which are marine acres, mostly coral reefs.
3. Kobuk Valley National Park, Alaska – 11,540 recreation visits
There are no roads, campgrounds, or entrance gates for people visiting this 1.8 million acre area. According to the National Park Service, half a million caribou are migrating through this park, crossing the Kobuk River and the Onion Portage. This may interest you : Travel returned: Indigenous tourist destinations. The 8000-year-old tradition of caribou hunting continues here today.
4. North Cascades National Park, Washington – 17,855 recreation visits
This alpine landscape is dominated by peaks crowned with more than 300 glaciers. More than 1,600 plant species have been identified in this land, which includes temperate rainforests and the dry ponderosa pine ecosystem. See the article : Durango opens second round of applications for arts and venues funding. There are over 400 miles of trails.
5. Lake Clark National Park & Preserve, Alaska – 18,278 recreation visits
Spanning over 4 million acres, this national park and reserve is home to three designated wild rivers and two volcanoes of the National Natural Natural Landmark. This may interest you : Swiss National Day – United States Department of State. This land has a history of 10,000 years of mankind and preserves the ancestral homelands of the Dena’in people.
6. Katmai National Park & Preserve, Alaska – 24,764 recreation visits
Katmai is an important habitat for thousands of brown bears. According to the Park Service, Katmai is home to approximately 2,200 brown bears. Brooks Camp along the Brooks River is one of the most popular sightseeing spots where you can watch bears feast on salmon.
7. Isle Royale National Park, Michigan – 25,844 recreation visits
An isolated archipelago in Lake Superior, Isle Royale, offers 165 miles of trails and over 30 campgrounds. It is open from mid-April to the end of October. According to NPS, ferry and seaplane services usually run from mid-May to the end of September. There are fewer species of mammals here – only 19 – than on the mainland, as animals must cross at least 14 miles from Lake Górne. The notable animal inhabitants include wolves and elks.
8. Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve, Alaska – 50,189 recreation visits
America’s largest national park, Wrangell-St. Elias covers 13.2 million acres – or about the size of Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park and Switzerland combined, says Park Service. Most of the park is backcountry and visitor services are limited. There are several manned trails in the Nabesna and McCarthy frontcountry areas.
9. Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida – 83,817 recreation visits
About 70 miles (113 km) west of Key West, Dry Tortugas is mostly open water with seven small islands. Garden Key is home to one of the country’s largest 19th-century forts, Fort Jefferson. The park can be accessed by boat or plane and is inhabited by nearly 300 species of birds. Bush Key closes each year from February to September so that Black and Brown Terns can breed freely there.
10. Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve, Alaska – 89,768 recreation visits
Another Alaska wildlife park, Glacier Bay covers 3.3 million acres. The main tourist season is from the end of May to the beginning of September. Visitors arrive by ferry or boat, and sea kayaking is a popular way to see the park’s spectacular glaciers. Black and brown bears live here, and the park recently temporarily closed one area to pedestrian traffic after the bear got food from the campers.
11. Great Basin National Park, Nevada – 144,875 recreation visits
Here the tops of the mountains meet hot desert valleys. Great Basin National Park is home to 13,063 feet of Wheeler Peak, ancient bristlecone pines, around 40 caves, and a wide variety of plants and animals. The altitude ranges from 5,000 to 13,000 feet with hiking trails of all levels.
12. Congaree National Park, South Carolina – 215,181 recreation visits
The Congaree National Park landscape is “defined by the presence of both floods and flames,” says Park Service. Flood waters from the Congaree and Wateree rivers regularly cover the old deciduous forest at the bottom of the park, and the upland pine forest is dependent on fires to remove competing vegetation. Canoeing is a popular way to explore the park. There is a 15 km signposted canoe trail.
13. Denali National Park & Preserve, Alaska – 229,521 recreation visits
Covering six million acres, this wilderness is home to North America’s tallest park – 20,310 feet Denali. Off-trail hiking is the norm, and vehicle access to the only road is largely restricted to buses. Grizzly and black bears, wolves, caribou, moose and Dall sheep live here.
14. Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota – 243,042 recreation visits
Touted as a “water, islands and horizons” park, Voyageurs covers 218,055 acres, 84,000 of which is water. The park has over 500 islands and four large lakes, as well as over two dozen smaller lakes that are best explored by boat. Voyageurs shares the northern border with Canada, and lucky visitors can even see the Northern Lights.
15. Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas – 243,291 recreation visits
This park boasts four of the highest peaks in Texas and the most extensive Permian fossil reef in the world. The Guadalupe Mountains Wilderness has over 80 miles of trails, including a hike through the Salt Basin Dunes, which rise 100 feet from the desert floor.
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